


Hand Me Your Life [Soulmate!AU]

by WindMeister8



Category: Code Geass
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Cage Fights, F/M, Genetic Engineering, Mutant Powers, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-04
Updated: 2015-08-04
Packaged: 2018-04-13 00:52:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,074
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4501503
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WindMeister8/pseuds/WindMeister8
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In a society divided by genetic engineering, you have grown up a survivor. Being one of the toughest competitors in cage fights, you pride yourself as one who has never relied on powers gained by meeting your soulmate. But what happens one day when you <i>do</i> meet your soulmate? Not to mention, it's not a typical meeting but one fraught with danger.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Hand Me Your Life [Soulmate!AU]

The crowd erupted into loud cheers mixed with a couple of jeers that reverberated through the small dilapidated arena. In the cage below, the smaller stature contender wrapped a pair of strong legs around the hulking competitor’s neck and gave a sharp twist, causing the opponent’s neck to snap. The referee hastily jumped in and after a quick glance at the limp body, lifted the winner’s hand up high in declaration of victory. A resounding roar erupted from the crowds as the winner removed the signature mask worn by fighters, revealing the young face of a woman, tough and fraught with scars, eyes sharp and toughened by battle. 

She smirked slightly, her face flushed from the fight and skin glistening with sweat. Turning away from the crowd, she exited the cage and headed towards the rest area while the masses chanted her name, (F/N), repeatedly in ever increasing intensity. She was the fastest, deadliest combatant in cage fights, the one that always went for the kill, the one that should never be underestimated, and the one that never relied on any powers. 

She was the “Little Crow.”

 

“Crow, here’s your cut of the winnings.”

(F/N) took the wad of bills and counted it, making double sure that the sneaky manager hadn’t pocketed some of her earnings. Satisfied with the amount, she tossed the money to her assistant, a scrawny kid who quickly stashed it away in the pocket of her trusty bag that laid on the table behind her. 

“Thanks, boss. When’s the next fight?” she said nonchalantly, draping her arm over the back of her chair as she studied the bald, middle-aged manager.

“Next week, same time. Some young guy who’s gaining lots of attention at the moment specifically demanded to fight you. I say, he’s courting death,” the manager chuckled darkly.

Her lips formed a thin line, the thought of having to taking up a challenge didn’t sit well with her. She never liked having to fight that type of men – full of themselves, greedy, and eager to rush to their deaths. They regarded cage fights as a way of proving themselves, getting rich and famous with tons of girls hanging on their arms. She, on the other hand, took it as training and a way of surviving in this rotten world.

She respected the cage fight. It was a place where everyone, man and woman, old and young, were equal. In the cage, nothing mattered. Just you and your opponent. There were no rules – just like in the real world. Many fighters used their powers – gained from meeting their soulmates – to their advantage. Admittedly, having a power was beneficial, especially when you’re up against an opponent that freely wielded their powers. However, she liked the thrill of going into a fight without the need to rely on some power that just materializes the first time you meet your soulmate. It made her stronger, better, each time she won a fight.

Besides, she didn’t really want to meet her soulmate. At present, she could be killed by anyone. But if she met her soulmate, the whole game changed. Only her soulmate would be able to take her life. She won’t be able to die by anyone else’s hands except natural causes, like illness or old age. Some people liked that – the sense of security that came with meeting your soulmate. In cage fights, however, there was a rule that fighters had to be able to die by other fighters’ hands. It wouldn’t make sense otherwise, if one party could only be knocked unconscious and not die. It really took the kick out of it. Audiences wanted to see death. So, fighters who met their soulmates for the purposes of gaining powers, did the one thing that allowed them to be free to die once more. 

They killed their soulmate.

Her manager’s voice cut through her thoughts, bringing her back to reality. “He’s got some power, that one.  Used it to kill his soulmate as soon as he got it. So, stay on your toes, Crow.”

She nodded and stood up, snapping her fingers to inform her assistant that they were leaving. The scrawny boy scrambled to his feet and handed her the bag which she slung over her right shoulder. The two of them headed to the door and were about to step out when the manager’s voice rung out.

“Oh and err, Crow, I was thinking this time, I should be getting a bigger cut of the winnings. You know, given the fact that the odds are in his favor,” he said.

The air became still. Only silence greeted him, and he gulped nervously. “I mean I’m sure you’ll win but for him to be able utilize his powers so quickly, he’s kinda good, you know.”

She spun around and walked towards him in a deliberately slow manner, her steps echoing through the room. Her face was expressionless but the muscles in her body were taut, ready to spring into action. Sensing that he had probably said the wrong thing, the manager took a step back but in a split second, she had shoved him against the wall with a single muscular arm.  He choked at the impact and struggled against her, his hands scrabbling frantically at her arm as his windpipe threatened to cave in. 

Ignoring his attempts, she stared right into his eyes, as if she were regarding a harmless insect. When she spoke, it was barely above a whisper but the cold malice behind her words conveyed it all. 

“We’ll be keeping the same ratio. What do you think?” It wasn’t so much a question as it was a threat.

He opened his mouth to speak but no words could come out. Instead, he moved his head down as much as could, signaling that he agreed. She took a last glance at him and released him from his chokehold. He fell to his knees, sputtering for air and clutching his neck.  She looked at his pathetic figure on the floor, disgust and contempt clear in her face. 

With a small click of her tongue, she turned and left with her assistant, leaving the manager who was still kneeling on the floor. They exited the building and headed towards the more affluent community of the Natural Society, which consisted of dreary apartment buildings and abandoned factories. Navigating the small dirty roads, she wondered whether she would ever leave this godforsaken place. She dreamed of a life in the Engineered Society, where only people who were biologically engineered at birth, could live. People who were born without any modifications to their genes to make them smarter, prettier, taller, etc, were immediately sent to Natural Society. 

She had no idea who had made that executive decision to separate people based on genes or when this whole system had started. Born in Natural Society and abandoned as a baby, it was a miracle that she could even read or write. A street oaf had picked her up and used her as a way to attract more pity from passersby in order to get alms. When she got older, he had taught her enough for her to write words in the dirt which would get more sympathizers. But once she was 10, he left her in search for younger, cuter kids. Her face was sharp and angular, eyes narrow and distrustful, and that didn’t attract people to part with their money.

She wandered the streets, alone and penniless, until she had the idea to pickpocket when she saw other kids doing the same thing. Of course there were countless times when she was caught red-handed and beaten to within an inch of her life. But that was also where she learned the street way of fighting – quick, accurate, …and dirty. By the time she was a young teen, she had gained quite a bit of a reputation.

With reputation, however, comes challenges and danger. Boys wanting to prove their worth or just indignant at the sight of a girl who was better than them, came after her in droves. On the other hand, there were also people, who admired her and begged her to take them under her tutelage. She adamantly refused their pleas partly because she didn’t want the burden of having to take on pupils, but mostly because she was uncomfortable and highly suspicious of most people. 

That changed when she was 18. A large group of boys had come to size her up – both figuratively and literally. She put up a tough, relentless fight but the number of opponents soon overwhelmed her. Biting and clawing, she struggled to release herself from their hold, determined not to go down without a fight. As the rest of them pinned her to the ground, one of them wielded a brick and was about to bring it down onto her head when a gun shot rang out in the confines of the warehouse that they were in. 

When she came to, she found herself in a neat and tidy bedroom, tucked under clean sheets. As it turned out, a young man in his early 30s had saved her and brought her home. She had tried to escape but he used the smallest amount of movement to induce the maximum pain in her, forcing her to retreat back to her bed.

He then carefully explained the circumstances that led to him finding her in the warehouse. Apparently, her reputation had spread far and wide, even to the people who participated and funded cage fights in Natural Society. He was curious about her skills and had taken it upon himself to scout her out. He had witnessed the manner in which she warded off the group of guys and impressed by her raw talent, he made the decision to take her in as his student. He would coach her to be a cage fighter and in return, the money that she won from fights would be divided equally between them. It was a fair deal, he reasoned, and the two of them would certainly benefit from this arrangement.

She had eyed him suspiciously during his explanation and asked him one more question, ‘Why me, why now?’ He had hesitated for a moment but then answered her calmly that he was no longer young enough to participate in cage fights and needed a successor. As for why he chose her, he said that she reminded him of himself when he was that age. 

She had been shocked by his words and even though he gave her some time to think about his proposal, in truth, she had already made her decision. The training began soon after she recovered and once he was satisfied with her progress, she entered cage fights – small ones at first, before moving on to the larger ones. They basked in their winnings, doing little things like picnics that made her feel like they were actually a normal father and daughter. 

Two years of a somewhat normal and joyous life passed by before he died due to sickness. She was greatly affected by his death and her fights turned into a gamble where she recklessly tossed her life away. But no matter how careless she was, how many mistakes she made in the cage, how bad her injuries were – she never died. 

After one particular nerve-wrecking fight that she won by teeth and claw, she exited the arena one day to be greeted by a torrent of rain. As the rain dripped down her face, she let herself cry for the first time in her life – letting her tears mingle with the rain as they poured endlessly from her eyes. 

Her legs were moving of their own accord and soon, she found herself standing in the usual corner of the street where she used to beg. In her place was a young boy, not more than 7 years of age, wearing the same look as her – empty, defeated, purposeless. She didn’t know how long she stood there just staring at him but eventually, she walked towards the boy, stopping in front of him with her hand extended. He looked up, brown eyes staring into hers, and for a moment, she thought that she saw her young self gazing back at her instead. Wordlessly, he took her hand and the two of them left the barren street filled with memories.

She didn’t know what possessed her to take him into her house, feed, and clothe him but that’s exactly what she did. He didn’t speak much and she learnt that he didn’t have a name. So she named him Pierre which meant ‘stone’, since his expression was quite stony.

Months passed and soon, she came to realize that the empty void in her soul was now being filled with Pierre’s presence. What she had received – love, family, and skills – she was now giving to Pierre. Never had she shown her love for him – that would invite trouble for the both of them. He never once complained or asked for anything and when she asked him whether he was satisfied with his life, his response was that he was happy being her assistant because he got to be with her all the time. But for him to survive alongside her, he would need to get better at fight-

“(F/N), there’s someone ahead,” Pierre’s curt voice broke her train of thought.

He had sharp hearing that could pick up sounds within a block radius and his skill had proven very useful on many accounts. She immediately shifted her legs apart and flexed her fingers before closing them into a fist. Her eyes darted from left to right, trying to discern where the enemy would come from, her entire system on high alert.

They were currently cutting through an abandoned weaponry factory and there were plenty of places for someone to hide. To exacerbate the situation, the only light that illuminated the factory came from the street lights a great distance away from where they were standing. It was certainly a bad setting for a confrontation, but she had been through worse.

Suddenly, the sound of footfalls hitting concrete echoed ominously through the structure. She tensed her body in preparation for conflict and Pierre stepped behind her, allowing her more room to move. Her eyes narrowed on an emerging silhouette as her breathing reached a fast, steady rhythm. Slowly, she made out the slim figure of a man in the darkness and she moved her arms in front of her at chest level, ready to lunge at him at a moment’s notice. Before she could make a move, a powerful light shined in her eyes and she stepped back, blinded by the intensity of the beam. 

“Oh sorry, I didn’t mean to shine it in your eyes,” the man apologized and focused the beam from his torchlight on her chest instead. 

She blinked her eyes a couple of times, trying to readjust her senses. The corner of her lips turned downward in a scowl as she tried to assess the stranger’s intentions.

“Who are you?” she called out, her voice sharp and demanding.

“Ah, let me introduce myself. I’m Lelouch Lamperouge,” he replied as he shone the torch on himself, illuminating his face and posh clothes.

He seemed to be around her age with black hair, violet eyes, a smile that could be interpreted either as friendly or devious, and most noticeably wearing a clean white shirt that seemed to be made of some expensive material like silk. In summation, he was a pretty suspicious character who wasn’t from these parts.

“So, _Lelouch_ , what are you doing in Natural Society? I’m figuring you for one of those stuck up elites in Engineered Society who has no business here,” she taunted him.

He gave a small chuckle and walked at a deliberate slow pace towards her, the sound of each step cutting through the still air. “Let me show you what business I have then.”

The muscles in her arms and legs tautened as she readied herself to throw a punch at him. He still advanced towards her, smiling as if nothing was wrong in this world. As soon as he got near, she sidestepped and threw a punch at his face.

But she never got near to hitting him. Her fist was within inches of his face when all of a sudden, her entire system went into overdrive. She halted in mid-strike, her eyes widening in shock as what felt like an electric shock coursed through her body. At the same time, she could feel raw energy building in her. The tips of her body tingled and when the mysterious man, Lelouch, turned to look at her, she immediately felt a connection with him on an entirely new level. In that instant, she knew exactly what was happening to her – to them. 

They were soulmates.

A split second after her revelation, a huge weight landed on her body and she was driven into the ground. She could hear something in her body crack as her ribcage screamed in agony, the breath knocked out of her in an instant. Her vision swam and she could taste blood in her mouth. She should have been dead by the impact but nothing could kill her now that she had just met her soulmate. 

Adrenaline kicked in and her strong legs dug into the ground while her lower torso moved upwards to dislodge her opponent. She felt the weight on her body lift off and roll to her left. Without missing a beat, she swung her leg towards her opponent but his fist connected with her foot, sending a burst of electricity through her body. Sharp needles seemed to prick every inch of her skin and she collapsed to the ground, writhing in pain. 

Before she could recover, a pair of handcuffs was slapped onto her wrists and she was hauled up forcefully by her elbows. She made to move again but a loud voice rang out.

“I don’t think you want to do that.”

Her head snapped around to the source of the voice and her eyes widened as she saw a short, stout man pointing a gun at Pierre’s head. Pierre’s hands were up, admitting defeat and despite his nonchalant look, she could see a flicker of fear in his young eyes. Another tall man stood a distance away from Pierre, his long hair falling onto his shoulders, making his face seem longer than it was. He had slit eyes and a thin mouth that was currently curved upwards in a disgusting smirk. 

Angry at being conned by her newly-found soulmate, she whirled around to face him but his situation was no better. Lelouch was also handcuffed and he was glaring at the tall man, hatred clearly visible in his eyes. He moved towards the tall man but in the blink of an eye, the tall man materialized behind him, a knife to Lelouch’s throat.

“Now, now, Lelouch. Is that any way to greet me?” he purred into Lelouch’s ear.

Thinking that nobody was watching her, she stepped towards Pierre but a sharp blow to her head made her spin around, clutching her head with her handcuffed hands. A third man with a large build stood behind her, pointing a gun at the back of her head. She could hear the crackle of electricity emitting from his hands, so she surmised that he was the one who brought her crashing to the ground. 

Lelocuh’s flashlight had fallen to the ground and the impact had triggered it to switch from directed beam to omnidirectional, casting light on all of them. Studying the three men closely under the new source of light, she noted that they all wore a black suit, complete with pants and shoes. The tall man – clearly the leader – and the one behind her had powers, so she could assume the one guarding Pierre was also with powers. The odds seemed to be stacked against her but at the moment, their motive wasn’t to kill. The problem was… what did they want?

As if to answer her question, the tall man spoke. “I have to say I’m mighty pleased that we finally caught you, Lelouch. It’s been hard tracking your movements up in Engineered Society, what with your large number of supporters. But now I have the pleasure of informing the agency that you… will soon be dead.”

He let out a deep chuckle as he signaled to the guy behind her. She twisted her head slightly to see what he was doing but he only hissed and pressed his gun flush to her head. Forced to look ahead, she heard him fumble with something but then her attention was once again brought to the leader who continued talking.

“It’s funny, isn’t it, Lelouch? The one thing you thought would save you from death – finding your soulmate – turns out to be your undoing. Now, all we need to do is get this pretty young lady here to shoot you.” He motioned to the man behind her.

She felt the man press a revolver into her handcuffed hands and although she was tempted to retaliate with it, the metal butt of the gun pressing into the back of her head reminded her not to do anything foolish. 

“Shoot him, lady.”

“Why should I?” she snapped.

The leader sighed in mock exasperation. “Because if you don’t, _he_ dies,” the leader emphasized as he jerked his head towards Pierre.

Her eyes widened slightly but she tried not to let her fear show through. “And why would I care if he lives or dies?”

The leader snapped his fingers and the short man shot Pierre in the leg, causing the boy to cry out and fall to the ground, clutching his bleeding leg. Her heart leapt in her throat as she heard his moans of agony but she couldn’t budge from her spot.

“It’s a flesh wound. But if you don’t cooperate, the next bullet will be in his head.”

She cursed silently, her mind running through possible options to escape this situation. Desperately trying to stall for time, she threatened the leader. “If you try that one more time, I swear I’ll use my powers to kill all of you. Beginning with you,” she snarled.

“What do you think the handcuffs are for, lady? Those are special ones designed to nullify any powers.” He gestured to the handcuffs with a flourish of his hand. “Just go on and shoot this guy. What’s it to you anyway?”

She had asked herself that exact question but she couldn’t come up with a good reason as to why she wouldn’t shoot this stranger who had literally entered her life minutes ago. She wasn’t one for being emotional or sentimental but since the beginning, she had felt a certain attraction towards Lelouch despite his distinction at birth. Something in the way his violet eyes studied her and his calm and calculating voice sounded made her feel out of breath. Maybe it was because he was her soulmate – she didn’t know. But she couldn’t possibly sacrifice Pierre because of him just because of this attraction. On the other hand, it was still possible that even after killing Lelouch, they would dispose of Pierre and her.

A whirl of emotions battled against each other in her body and her eyes flickered to Lelouch’s violet ones. She stared deep into his eyes as if trying to obtain forgiveness for what she was going to do next. But before she tore her gaze away, she noticed the corner of his lips had turned upward and his eyes flitted to Pierre for just a second before returning to her. In that moment, she understood what he meant and gaining resolve, she lifted her handcuffed hands at shoulder level, aiming the gun at his heart.

Her hands trembled a little and she uttered a small prayer, hoping to God that she was right and fired. The sound of the shot echoed through the factory and Lelouch stumbled and fell to the ground as blood started to ooze out from his wound. 

The leader cackled in delight and nudged Lelouch’s body using the heel of his foot. “Well, I’m mighty glad that this saga is finally over,” he said as he kneeled down and removed Lelouch’s handcuffs. “Won’t be needing this anymore.”

He turned to look at her and Pierre before barking out his last command. “Kill them.”

No sooner had he spoken the words than a glass-like material appeared and encased Pierre. The three men looked at the barrier that had formed around the boy in shock. Before they could react, she lashed out at the man behind her with her handcuffed hands, hitting him in the head. She brought her gun around and aimed it at the short man behind Pierre, but it flew out of her hands and into his. 

_Magnetic power._

Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw that the leader had disappeared, so she turned her attention back to the two men. Electricity guy was already throwing a punch at her but her reflexes proved faster and she aimed a kick at his kneecap. He crumpled to the ground on one knee, hissing in pain. Without giving him time to recover, she grabbed his arm and gave it a sickening twist, dislocating it at the shoulder. A shot rang out and she felt the bullet enter her shoulder. Grunting, she ignored the searing pain and gave two accurate jabs to the side of his head which caused him to lose consciousness.

Quickly, she scrambled behind Electricity guy, using him as a shield from Magnetic guy who was shooting at her. He shot again but this time it went through Electricity guy’s body. Peeping out from her makeshift shelter, she gauged the distance between them and slipped out her knife that she kept hidden in her boots. Magnetic guy aimed at her once more and taking in a deep breath, she threw her knife at him, the blade sinking into his gun hand. He cried out and she sprinted towards him, whipping his legs out from under him. When he went down, she pulled out the knife from his skin and slit his throat.

She panted lightly from exertion as she watched the blood gush out from his throat. It gave her a small amount of personal satisfaction to watch him die, seeing that he was the one who shot Pierre. She spat on the ground in contempt and then, rushed to Pierre’s side. She was blocked by the barrier but she called out to him, “Are you alright?”

He nodded and gave a small smile. His pallor was still fine, so she guessed the leader was right in saying it was merely a flesh wound. Her wound, however, was slightly more serious and she clutched her shoulder, trying to stem the flow of the blood. She shifted her gaze to Lelouch who was still lying on the ground. Her heart raced as she wondered whether she had really shot him dead. Getting up slowly, she moved towards him.

Her advance was halted when the leader materialized beside Lelouch and gave a hard kick to his abdomen. A small yelp escaped from Lelouch’s lips and by reflex, he curled up into a ball. 

_So he really wasn’t dead. That’s a relief._

She let out a small sigh, and immediately switched back to her fighting mode. The leader was a teleporter and from experience, it wasn’t easy dealing with those types. He glanced at his two dead comrades and clicked his tongue in disgust. “Looks like you took out those dimwits, eh. Not bad. Are the two of you guys a combo team or something? One of you plays dead using his powers, the other one takes down my team mates while I got cheated into surveying the area, thinking there was a third party. But it’s time for you to go down.”

He disappeared in a flash just as she lunged towards him. Before she could react, he reappeared behind her and slashed her back. She stumbled forward, gritting her teeth in pain. The blood loss was making her dizzy and weak. She had to end this fight fast before she lost any more and fainted. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and stilled her body, letting her other senses take over. The smell of her blood on the leader’s knife was still fresh. She could still smell it lingering around… getting nearer…

_There!_

She whipped out her own knife and with her eyes still closed shut, she thrust her knife to the right with all her might. Feeling the knife sink into flesh, she opened her eyes to see the leader impaled onto her knife, blood dripping from the corner of his mouth. Her blade had sunk into his heart, killing him instantly. 

Yanking her knife out of his body, she let him fall limp to the ground, her breath coming out in ragged gasps. She heard footsteps coming from behind her and she whirled around, ready to take on the next enemy. Finding that it was only Lelouch, she relaxed slightly but she regarded him with a suspicious look.

“Thank you, (F/N). I knew I could count on you,” he said with a smile, holding out the key to her handcuffs.

“How do you know my name?” she asked, her arms outstretched, letting him uncuff her.

“How do you think some people find their soulmates so easily?” he replied as the handcuffs fell off from her wrists. “This whole soulmate business… is not magic.”

She raised her eyebrows at his statement, rubbing her wrists as she stared at him. He was certainly mysterious and intriguing and she found herself drawn in by him.

“This world… is inherently unfair, corrupted, and evil. My resistance aims to change that. We need people like you, (F/N). I need you,” he said seriously.

She contemplated his words, the cogs turning in her brain, churning out the possibilities of what he was suggesting. It was an opportunity – a dangerous one with high risks. 

“What’s in it for me?” she asked.

“Citizenship for you and the boy.”

She glanced at Pierre and then back at Lelouch, a small smile creeping over her lips.

“Deal.”


End file.
